The Hutt's Tournament pt. 6
by Garic Starr
Summary: Garic tries to enter Jabba's Sabacc tournament and discovers the stakes are higher than he thought


Chapter 6: Balance

Smoke rose from the far side of the palace. Klaxon's blared as guards and servants scurried along the great walls towering over the sand. Solo gunned the thrusters of the rickety skiff as the wind picked up.

"Think we should go back?" I yelled in the din of the rushing air. Solo looked over his shoulder at the receding palace, the twin suns shining high in the skies. 

"Nah. It went off away from anything important. My guess is that it's a distraction to draw everyone away from Jabba." I nodded and the whine of the engines filled the silence. I double checked the canisters in my guns and replaced them in their holsters, loaded to bear. Solo kept straight ahead, not looking at me. He was fuming. I wasn't too giddy either.

Dune after dune past beneath us, the horizon showed a small speck against the yellow background. 

"You know where you're going?" I felt lost in the vast desert. He slapped my chest and pointed ahead toward the horizon.

"You see it?" asked Solo. I squinted from the harsh suns. The sail barge slowly came into focus. 

"That's it alright. Doesn't look like anything's going on though."

"Maybe she came to her senses." I looked at Solo and he raised his eyes. "It could happen."

The communicator light lit up and Solo grabbed the transmitter as a gruff voice came over the speaker. 

"Turn back **snap**…if you **hiss**… shot down." Solo punched the speaker but the signal was lost. 

"This is Han Solo. Can you read me? This is Han Solo. Over." He talked into the mike desperately trying to communicate with the massive barge.

"They can't hear you." He snapped his head around to look at me. I stepped up to meet him and showed him the cord to the ancient communication. It was frayed and severed from the entire unit. Solo smirked in disgust and tossed the microphone gingerly over the side. 

As we approached the mighty vehicle, it red sails full with the desert winds, flashes of laserfire raced at us, pelting the hull. Both of us ducked instinctively, the skiff wobbling with each blast.

"Are you even going to try and avoid them?" I yelled. Solo looked at me angrily.

"You got a problem with my driving?"

"Driving? No." I pulled out my two blasters and returned fire. "Dodging? Yes."

Solo took my insult to heart and zigged and sidestepped as best he could. And boy could this guy drive a skiff. I'd seen him swoop race back on Corellia about ten years ago and I thought he was good then. He'd gotten better.

"Pull along side and let me off." I crouched near the railing and braced myself for the jump.

The barge was towering. The side was like a metal cliff rising out of the sand. Guards took pot shots at us as Han managed to get along the brute of a ship. As we raced along side, I could see bodies lying on the main deck. Looks like Pandora had succeeded in finding Jabba as well.

"Pull closer so I can get on board. Then wait for my signal." I ordered.

"Signal? What kind of signal?" Solo looked troubled.

"You'll see it."

Solo slowed to a crawl as I sprung onto the main deck. With a roar the skiff pulled away. Several guards fired as I rolled to my knees. I drew my blasters, firing in rapid succession dropping three men coming down from the gun deck while another managed to avoid my fire by diving behind a gun mount. 

I hopped to my feet and ran toward the main stairway, a ship-wide flight of stairs that went into the belly of the barge. I kept my guns trained on the hiding guard, waiting for the moment he showed himself.

****

She's got to be somewhere. A head popped up like a womprat in the sand. The guard raised his gun. Two quick burst vaporized his head before he had a chance to squeeze off a round. Solo may be a better pilot but I was a quicker draw. My boots clicked vacantly as I raced down the stairway. The door slid open as I waited patiently out of view. As the door completed it's travel a volley of lasers flew out towards me. I leaned out of harms wait waiting for the door to shut again. 

Another guard tried to surprise me at the top of the stairs but I blasted his knee out from him and he stumbled down the stairs to my feet. I spotted just what I needed.

I knelt quickly near the moaning man as I reached for a small grenade. I slapped at the control panel and the door slowly slid open. Another volley showered out into the stairwell. I crouched down and pulled the thin pin out from the grenade, rolling the explosive into the room.

Chaos and screams from the scattering men filled the air until the door sealed off their voices. A loud boom rocked the deck and smoke poured out from around the door. Again the door opened, this time no lasers greeted me and I crawled into the darkness under the smoke. 

Chairs and tables burned and smoldered from the explosion. Groans of injured men filled the hazy room. I kicked through the twisted remains of a table as I found another door. As it slid opened a man fell on top of me.

A quick jab was all I could defend myself with as the guard fell. His weight trapping me to the floor. I was caught off-guard, as the mercenary never made another move. Then the smell of charred flesh hit me like a fist as I managed to roll the hulk off of me. His chest was blackened and burned, a laser to the heart. Apparently I was going the right way. 

The mid-deck was vacant as I hurried through empty room after empty room. Every so often a body, left like a breadcrumb in the woods, informed me I was on the trail. Having been on this barge once or twice I knew that the main room was one more deck below. As I approached the final stairwell, I could hear a scream. It was profoundly female and sounded too much like Pandora for me. A quick sprint and a short jump and I landed at the bottom of the stairs, Jabba's main audience chamber directly in front of me. I pulled both guns and punched the console. Quickly the door slid open and I ran into the room.

Pandora had a Gamorrean on each arm, holding her in place in front of Jabba. Several aliens surrounded them. Fett was busy kneeling on the floor before Jabba's dais, working on some device. 

"Let her go!" I wasn't asking and my voice proved it. Fett's head jerked up from his work and he thought about going for his blaster. But that idea dissolved quickly as he turned back to his work.

"Garic!" Pandora yelled. It sounded like shock, but I hoped it was relief. A murmur rippled through the room. Jabba laughed as his Kowalian monkey cackled.

"Garic. You foolish twit. You should know that you are in a position unsuitable for negotiation." Jabba's voice boomed in his best basic. I slowly moved forward, both guns ready for anything. 

"I think I could probably kill you before anyone could kill me. I'm pretty good with these things you know." Jabba laughed again as he nodded.

"You are one of the fastest draws I've ever seen, that is true. But even you can recognize the situation. This wench plotted an assassination attempt. A bomb." Fett looked up from his work quickly at the mention of the device. His attention returned to the delicate task of disarming the bomb.

"Well that's probably a bad career choice for her. But I'm getting her out of here." I paused, trying to calm myself. "Alive."

"You killed my parents you worthless slug!" Pandora screamed, her legs kicking futilely. 

My peripheral vision picked up the flash of metal. A Quarren tried to swing a vibroaxe at me. Without shifting my weight or moving my head, I aimed and fired. All in less than a second. The axe fell to the floor as the Quarren screamed in pain, his chest smoking from the blast. The room gasped as Jabba's eyes widened in horror. His obnoxious pet screamed, running in terror.

"Who's next?" I was a few arm lengths away from Pandora. The room was tense. A bar to my right hid the bartender, hunched out of sight. A group of men to my left stood near an open window, a ray of sun cutting like a laser through the smoky darkness. I could feel the hot breeze come in from the desert.

"Explain yourself hag." Boomed Jabba.

"You extorted money from my parents. They were penniless." She started crying and sobbing uncontrollably. "And when they couldn't pay, you burned down their farm and killed them." With a defiant cry she spit at the Hutt. I wanted to kill the bastard myself, but I knew I wouldn't live to escape. 

"Done." Fett said absently as he stood, blaster aimed at me, seamlessly going from one major crisis to another. Fett was as cool as ice. A true professional.

"Let's not do anything foolish, Fett. You could kill me, but we both know I'll drop you before I go. All I want is the girl."

Now I was between Jabba and Pandora. The two guards seemed hesitant; their small brutish brains not sure what to do. I studied Fett and Jabba. No one else had the heart to do anything. A few were even trying to sneak out the side doors. 

"Garic. You'll never make it out alive. And if you do, you'll be the most wanted man in the galaxy. I'll put a price on your head so high; your own mother will turn you in. All for a woman!" Jabba's voice grew angrier with each snotty breath. "You're a walking corpse, Starr."

"We all have to go sometime, don't we?" I focused my energy into my blasters. If I concentrated I was the best shot in the galaxy. If I didn't I was only exceptional. This was going to take a perfect shot. 

With a sudden step, I aligned myself perfectly and fired both blasters at Boba Fett. Jabba let out a squeal as Fett managed to react in time to fire a round. My lasers found their mark. A grenade hanging on Fett's belt took the impact and exploded. Fett went flying from the force. His armor saving his life. 

In the same motion I turned and shot both Gamorreans in the face, killing them instantly. I grabbed Pandora before the two meaty pigs hit the floor. Everyone ran for cover as we hurried to the windows. 

The shaft of light was like a beacon, calling us to safety. Pandora ran along side me, my arm pushing her along. I fired blindly behind me, trying to buy a second more. A few feet from the window, Pandora tripped. Her body fell to the floor but with a yank managed to pull her forward. But the sudden dead weight she represented spun me around a foot from escape. She stumbled forward as someone fired a round. The bolt caught me square in the left shoulder. The pain shot into my arm and down my back. I fell backwards, Pandora still in my clutches. My legs caught the bottom of the opening. Another shot managed to clip my right thigh sending me out into the desert. Pandora succeeded in following me in my fall from the barge. 

I nearly passed out from the impact with the sun worn sands. I landed at the top of a dune, rolling down the sand. The sand was hot and burned my skin as I slid to a stop. Pandora landed in a heap along side of me, her arm smashing into my smoldering shoulder.

"AAAAAAAAAAHH!" I screamed wildly. I lay there panting heavily, waiting to die. Above us the barge was slowly turning as a small skiff spun around under the massive vehicle.

"Starr, you are crazy!" She grabbed me gingerly and kissed my sandy head. I cried out in pain as the skiff lowered to meet us.

Solo shook his head, disappointed. "Ain't over yet. Get him in here. We gotta go." Pandora got me to my feet as Solo pulled me into the skiff. My leg throbbed but both wounds were superficial As I lay on the floor of the skiff, Solo hit the thrusters. The whine of the repulsorlift engines filled my ears and with a jerk we were off.

Pandora knelt beside me, tending to my shoulder. It only felt bad, actually the blast wasn't that strong. She pulled off my jacket and I winced as I yanked my arm out of the sleeve. I had lost one blaster in the fall but had managed to hold on to the other. I placed it on the deck absently, thankful to be alive.

Two green splashes of laser fire hit the back of the skiff. Solo swore and gave Pandora the controls. A skiff, full of Jabba's men, had pulled out from behind the barge and was firing wildly at us.

"Keep it straight and keep it fast!" He yelled as he pulled his blaster. He knelt by the railing firing quickly behind him. I managed to sit up and pull my own blaster with my good arm. Thankfully I was right-handed and was a better shot with the right. I aimed and fired as the motley crew slowly drew closer. 

One shot found it's mark and a shower of sparks and smoke sprayed from the rear of our skiff. Solo and I managed to hit a few of our pursuers, their limp bodies falling off the skiff into the waiting sands below. Our skiff sputtered and started to slow. Pandora looked over her shoulder nervously as the other skiff drew near. I twisted my body into a kneeling position. We'd have to abandon ship pretty soon. 

Solo fired some more blasts as he ran back to grab Pandora. I picked of another alien from behind. Three men remained on the skiff. Solo used his foot to kick the engines off as the trailing skiff pulled quickly along side. With guns blazing, Solo leapt onto the skiff, tackling a Devorian. They landed with a loud thud as Solo shot him quickly in the stomach. Without a pause he whirled and aimed his gun at the driver. The coward jumped over the side as Pandora and I hopped aboard. As I landed, my right leg, still stinging from the wound, buckled and I fell into Solo who dropped his blaster. The remaining alien, a large Elom, devilish looking and muscular, pounced. 

The Elom was on both of us in a flash. He had Solo in a chokehold while wrapping his meaty hand around my face. Pandora tried to reach from the fallen weapon, but with a powerful kick, he caught her ankle and she fell painfully into the control panel. Suddenly the skiff picked up speed and the shift made everything unstable. I rolled to one side, the beast's hand still covering my face, while the Elom fell onto Solo who gave out a whelp. 

With both hands I grabbed the Elom's forearm, trying futilely to remove it from my face, His grip was tight and my head throbbed from the pressure. Solo managed to elbow him in the chest. A release of foul breath allowed his grip to loosen as Solo wriggled free. Solo charged but the agile Elom kicked him in the chest, sending Han backwards, dazed and winded. With an almost effortless toss, I went flying across the skiff, over the railing. I snagged the rail with my good leg, my hand finding a support to cling from. The desert raced below and I swallowed deeply. **This could be a problem**.

I could here blaster fire from above when the skiff pitched violently to the right. I held my grip but my leg came unhooked and I dangled from one arm. My other arm was pretty useless and I tried in vain to swing my leg back up to the rail. The skiff dipped suddenly and I lifted my feet to avoid the rushing sand. 

"I could use a little help over here!" I yelled into the air. Again the skiff dipped, my legs smacking into the high dunes below. Bursts of dust and sand rose with each impact and my arm grew more fatigued with every second. Again another blaster bolt and the hulking mass of the Elom fell off to my right, landing in a dune rather rudely.

My fingers were slipping. I yelled again. When all my strength had drained and I could feel my hand give up, Pandora's face popped over the side and she smiled. She grabbed my arm and Solo quickly joined her. They pulled me onto the deck and I lay there panting.

"Never a dull moment with you is there?" My head lifted to look into her glowing eyes. She knelt beside me and kissed my forehead. 

"Garic. You'll do anything for attention." Solo crossed his arms and laughed. Pandora joined him and I even laughed a little but the pain in my shoulder soon quieted me. I put my head back on the deck and drifted to sleep.

****

Epilogue

A few months had passed. Pandora and I went our separate ways; Solo and Lando went theirs. Jabba didn't lie. He put a price on my head so high I was tempted to turn myself in. Solo managed to hide his involvement with the whole deal and was still on good terms with the slug. I decided to tempt fate and found myself drinking at the Mos Eisley cantina. I found a dark booth in the back and Riley would send a drink over to me on occasion. The creatures and people mixed in the background as I watched the galaxy pass by my table. 

Absently I lit another cigar and stretched out in my booth. I was waiting for a contact to meet me with some cargo that they needed to get to the Core Worlds. A real quite operation. I was shuffling some Sabacc cards, playing a game of Solitude when a pair of glowing eyes came to my table. I looked up and recognized those eyes in a second.

"Hey stranger." Pandora smiled her eyes glowing brightly. I put the cards on the table and pulled the cigar out of my mouth.

"Hello gorgeous. Have a seat." I offered her the other side of the booth. She sat down gracefully and looked intently at me. "What can I do for ya?"

"Well. I couldn't resist the urge…" she said cryptically.

"To do…?"

"To see who really is the best player. No distractions." She slowly caressed my hand and pulled the deck from them. I smiled as she dealt.

"Girls like you always get me into trouble…"

"Shut up and play, flyboy."

****

THE END

[For more Garic Starr stories click here][1]

   [1]: http://www.electricrain.com/garic/



End file.
